The Right Time
by silver-wings124
Summary: Booth and Brennan are finally ready to move forward, together. Post-The Blackout in the Blizzard
1. Chapter 1

**Hi! So the hiatus is killing me, and I have finally gotten back some 'Bones' inspiration, so here is the beginning of a short piece I am writing. It takes place after 'The Blackout in the Blizzard', and is just my wishful thinking. It will probably be only four or five chapters long, so I hope to write the rest soon. Please let me know what you think, feedback is always wonderful!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Bones.**

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**He had given it a month, which meant it was almost two months since his break-up.

Thirty days, since his partner and himself had admitted to wanting more between them. Unfortunately, like always when it came to them, the timing was just not right. He wished their conversation had occurred a year earlier, but as usual their personal affairs were never simple. After all, to have last month's conversation take place at all was something he had all but given up on, so he definitely wasn't going to jinx it.

She always took his lead when it came to matters of the heart and anything regarding human emotion, so he wasn't surprised when he hadn't heard anything from her on the subject since that night. While she usually called it an 'old-fashioned' and archaic ritual, she was waiting for him to make the first move; at least he hoped that was the case.

He was almost certain that the time was now.

He felt he had given her and himself sufficient time to deal with recent events. While many would probably speculate that he was moving on too quickly, he knew that the time was finally perfect. And anyone who thought that obviously didn't know the two of them well enough. Hannah was gone; he accepted that. He always knew in the back of his mind that it wasn't going to last forever, regardless of how much he tried to convince himself of that. In the last six weeks he had evaluated his whole relationship with the reporter. He had cared for her deeply, possibly loved on some level, but it was definitely not enough. He had been telling himself that she wasn't a 'consolation prize', which he was still adamant she hadn't been. However, he now recognised how much turmoil was the result of their relationship, and was now seeing that he probably misread love as lust and convenience.

He had his mind made up, he was ready. And he was definitely going to make that known to her.

**... **

They were driving back from a crime scene, a body found near a river, almost certainly a suicide, just needed a formal examination to confirm.

This was the first call-out they had gotten in weeks, so it was one of the first times the partners had seen each other since the day of the blizzard. She looked over at her partner, looking more content than he had in months. She just hoped it would last. He had been distant lately, more so because there were no cases, but he also hadn't enforced his 'partner-ly' protectiveness. She wasn't surprised by this though; they hadn't had that sort of contact in months, so she had gotten used to seeing him sporadically,

She noticed a change in his face, like he was deep in thought, something she rarely witnessed from him.

She watched as his brow lines creased and his grip tightened on the wheel. He was either nervous or something was troubling him, she presumed it was the latter. He avoided looking in her direction, looking at her would throw his whole thought process out the window, and to make the decision he was deliberating, he couldn't be influenced by her. She looked back out the front window, which was when he took his chance to glance at her. As soon as his eyes fell on her, he knew he was making the right decision.

Her hand was resting on her leg, while she was still distracted by the happenings outside the car; he reached over and gently took her hand. As he suspected her head whipped back to him almost instantly. The look on her face was questioning, all he gave in response was a slight smile and a small nod. After a few moments she allowed their fingers to interlace and she gripped his hand as tight as she could.

Finally they were both ready and willing to take the plunge.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you so much for the reviews on the first chapter, they blew my mind! Here's the next chapter, I hope you enjoy it. Please let me know what you think! More to come soon.**

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The rest of their drive was in silence, both of them processing the possibilities they now had. He was congratulating himself for actually taking the chance, for finally giving in to what he had feared the last few months. She was in shock, amazed that Booth was ready so soon, but glad she could finally be open about her feelings. Unfortunately the silence also brought uncertainties, while they had managed to get to this point, neither of them were completely sure on where to go next.

Their silence was filled with awkwardness and doubts, both uneasy about what their developments earlier would lead to.

He decided it would be safest to drop her at the lab for now, just so he could have time to think about what all of this now meant. But, he reminded himself to reassure her that he wasn't changing his mind, he just needed time to process, like he assumed she would as well. As they were getting closer to the lab he tightened his grip on her hand, which he hadn't dropped since he first grasped it, hoping that this would set her at ease and tell her that his was still willing.

He pulled up outside the Jeffersonian and for a few minutes, neither of them moved, no words were exchanged. But, each was aware of the other's fear for the moment to end. After what felt like hours she began picking up her things from the car floor, beginning to make her way out. Before she was able to leave though, he pulled the hand that was in his grip up to his lips and kissed her knuckles gently, and as she let go one word escaped his lips.

"Tonight," her head nodded in response before she fled the car for the lab, her house of reason. Booth sat outside the lab for a few extra minutes, pulling himself together, until he finally started the car and drove off towards the Hoover.

...

She managed to make her way to her office without being seen but any of her colleagues; which was a relief because if any of them tried to converse with her now, she didn't think she could answer coherently. Her mind was on overload, re-playing their moment in the car; while short, it was a significant step towards the right direction. It was a moment that would be underestimated by others, but for them it meant the world.

Brennan sat down in her chair, slowing turning her computer on, trying to look like she was being productive. But, after what had happened, there was no way her mind couldn't be pre-occupied, with more important matters.

_Listen to yourself, one small touch from him, and your thoughts about work goes out the window,_ she mentally scolded herself for allowing her mind to wander from what was _really_ important at the moment, identifying the remains and closing the case. Shaking her head from thoughts of him, she grabbed her lab coat and walked towards the platform, hoping that no one would notice her lack of attentiveness.

While usually any of her less than determined behaviour towards work would be pulled up, somehow her unusual behaviour went unnoticed. But, she was certainly not complaining, she was more than happy to keep this to herself for the time being. She just hoped she could get through the rest of the day without drawing unwanted attention to herself.

...

Saying he was nervous was a understatement, he felt sick from nerves and feared she would have changed her mind in the few hours since their car ride. He managed to make it to her door without trouble and even was able to knock on her door, but as soon as that was over he was almost convinced to run away like a child.

Fortunately for him, she answered the door before he put his thoughts into action. When he saw her on the other side of the door, his heart began to race, he knew instantly he had made the right decision. She was smiling, that was a good sign. She moved away from the door to allow him entry and quickly shut and locked it.

When she turned back to face him he saw it, her uncertainty, her anticipation, but more importantly, love; the one thing he had managed to overlook the last several months. He instantly felt ashamed, angry with himself that he had missed the obvious. He had bad-mouthed her in his thoughts, blaming her for everything, but now he saw it and he wanted to kick himself. However, underneath his current self-loathing, he knew he didn't see it, because he didn't want to, but now he was glad he could finally see her true feelings.

The partners were unsure of how to proceed, both were anxious for some development, but neither knew how to start. Silence overwhelmed them until she spoke.

"I love you, Booth," she wasn't sure why she said it, she was metaphorically backed into a corner and had blurted out the first thing that came to mind. Embarrassed by her outburst she broke eye contact with him and her eyes met the floor.

But, her confession made more of an impact that she thought, because in seconds, Booth was in front of her. He placed left hand on her waist and used his right to lift her chin up, allowing him to see her face. She saw a shadow of a grin on his face before his look turned to a serious one. He allowed himself to get lost in her eyes for minutes before he placed his hand on her cheek.

"I love you too, Bones," after his admission he moved his hand behind her neck and lowered his lips to hers. As their lips met, they both felt relief and joy rush through them, the kiss lasted only a few seconds, but the feelings they were experiencing would last forever. When they came apart their foreheads rested on each others, both their eyes closed.

Booth whispered after a few minutes, "We can do this."


End file.
